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Photograph of McGee School
Photograph by Kevin Schuchmann, CC BY-SA 3.0. Via Wikimedia Commons.

McGee School

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999.

From the record

“McGee School, also known as Coffin's Grove Township, District #1, is a one-room schoolhouse located west of Manchester, Iowa, United States. Built in 1868 in a folk-vernacular style, it is a rare example of a brick one-room schoolhouse in Iowa, and the only on left in Delaware County.”

Wikipedia article McGee School, CC BY-SA 4.0.

One of 14 National Register listings published here for Delaware County · listed in 1999 · category: Building.

Sources: the Wikipedia article · the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service

The listing

  • What is counted as historic. The nomination lists 1 building as contributing to the listing.
  • Address. Jct. of 197th and 145th Aves., Manchester, 52057
  • When was it listed? October 1999
  • Category. building
  • Township. Coffins Grove township
  • National Register reference number. 99001251 - the number the National Park Service assigned this property when it was listed, and the key its nomination file is catalogued under at the National Archives.

Fires near this property

12 since 2006

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 12 fires within 5 miles of McGee School between 2006 and 2015, burning about 51 acres in total. None started naturally. None was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Missing data/not specified/undetermined11
Debris and open burning1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
23 May 2009Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreIowa Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
15 May 2013Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreIowa Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
9 April 2009Missing data/not specified/undetermined5.0 acresIowa Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
9 April 2009Missing data/not specified/undetermined2.0 acresIowa Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
2 April 2011Missing data/not specified/undetermined6.0 acresIowa Department of Natural Resources145 AVE, IA
18 April 2009Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreIowa Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
16 April 2009Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreIowa Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
12 April 2009Missing data/not specified/undetermined5.0 acresIowa Department of Natural Resourcesnot named

Every fire recorded in Delaware County

Mines and quarries near this property

10 of 11 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 11 workings within 5 miles of McGee School: 9 past producers, 2 producers. 2 still produce. What was taken out: Stone, Crushed/Broken, Sand and Gravel, Construction, Clay. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Mattox BrickyardClayPast Producer
Arnold PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Bahl QuarryStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer
Ferguson PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Masonville QuarryStone, Crushed/BrokenProducer
Sedgewick QuarryStone, Crushed/BrokenProducer
UnknownSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
UnknownStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer
UnknownSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
UnknownSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer

Every working recorded in Delaware County

Storms near this property

60 of 77 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Manchester, the town this property stands in, in 77 storm reports between 1994 and 2026: 41 thunderstorm wind, 15 hail, 10 flash flood, 3 tornado. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
May 2000HailManchester$4,000,000no account filed
May 2003Thunderstorm WindManchester$2,000,000Also reported by law enforcement
October 2007Flash FloodManchester$500,000There were several reports of rainfall of 6 inches in the city of Manchester, with a trained spotter measuring 3 inches in one hour. Considerable basement and street flooding occurred, and there was some damage to gravel roads in the surrounding rural areas. Water was knee deep in some parts of the city, and many streets were closed. About 150 homes in the area had basement flooding or damage to foundations. The administration building at Manchester's school bus garage was flooded with two feet of water on the main floor. In only about 3 hours, the city received twice as much rain as it usually gets in the entire month of October.
July 2010FloodManchester$100,000Heavy rains on July 22 and 23 caused the Maquoketa River to rise 3 feet in about 2 hours during the late afternoon and evening of July 23. Some docks and decks were damaged along the river.
July 1995Thunderstorm WindManchester$75,000no account filed
April 1994Thunderstorm WindManchester$50,000no account filed
July 2008LightningManchester$15,000Lightning struck the Delaware County Courthouse at 418 am July 21 damaging the roof, security camera system, elevator, telephone system, and wireless connection to the engineer's office.
July 2006LightningManchester$10,000Some time between 1045 and 1115 CST lightning struck one of the West Delaware School District buildings and destroyed the phone system.
June 2005Thunderstorm WindManchester$10,000Trees and power lines down.
April 1997Thunderstorm WindManchester$10,000no account filed
July 1995Thunderstorm WindManchester$10,000no account filed
July 1995Thunderstorm WindManchester$10,000no account filed
July 2022LightningManchester$5,000The Emergency Manager relayed a report that lightning struck a house and put a hole in the roof. The exact time of the event is unknown but used the time that it was reported to the local EMA.
August 2010Flash FloodManchester$5,000Heavy rains resulted in flash flooding of a gravel road near Manchester, IA during the afternoon and evening of August 13.
May 2004Flash FloodManchester$5,000Water 1 foot deep on roads with debris.
May 2004Thunderstorm WindManchester$5,000no account filed
July 2006Thunderstorm WindManchester$2,000Civil Defense reported many 1 to 1.5 inch diameter branches down with a few 4 inch diameter branches down.
June 1998Thunderstorm WindManchester$2,000Buildings were damaged by strong thunderstorm winds.
April 2026Flash FloodManchester-Emergency management reported several roads washed out.
March 2025Thunderstorm WindManchester-Measured by wind equipement.
June 2025Thunderstorm WindManchester-Large lighting pole was downed at baseball field at fairgrounds.
July 2025Thunderstorm WindManchester-Broadcast Media relayed a report of a large tree uprooted in Manchester, which fell on a fence. The time and location of the event were estimated using radar.
July 2025Thunderstorm WindManchester-The Emergency Manager reported that trees and power lines are down.
April 2024Thunderstorm WindManchester-A public report of an estimated 60 MPH thunderstorm wind gust. There was a fence blown down with tree limbs knocked down.
July 2023Thunderstorm WindManchester-A trained spotter reported a 70 mph wind gust with the thunderstorm.
March 2023Tornado (EF1)Manchester-An EF1 tornado moved from 3 miles southwest of Manchester through the southeast part of town. This tornado damaged to structures and trees along its path, with estimated peak winds around 110 mph.
August 2022Thunderstorm WindManchester-The Emergency Manager reported that a livestock building was flipped over. The time of the event was estimated based on radar.
August 2022Thunderstorm WindManchester-The Emergency Manager reported tree branches down and tree damage around town.
July 2022Thunderstorm WindManchester-The Emergency Manager reported downed power lines.
July 2021Tornado (EF1)Manchester-An EF-1 tornado briefly touched down on the southwest side of town damaging several farm outbuildings and a large show barn. No injuries were reported.
August 2021Thunderstorm WindManchester-A roof peeled off a downtown building, with several trees blown down in downtown.
June 2021Thunderstorm WindManchester-Tree branches were blown down, resulting in city needing to clear up.
September 2020Thunderstorm WindManchester-A strong wind gust was reported by broadcast media.
June 2020Thunderstorm WindManchester-The Emergency Manager reported that part of a roof was torn off of rural building. The time of the event was estimated using radar.
May 2019Flash FloodManchester-Fish Hatchery Road washed out as Spring Branch creek rose quickly out of its banks.
September 2019Thunderstorm WindManchester-Trees and branched reported blown down near east Main Street and D5X.
June 2018Thunderstorm WindManchester-Multiple trees were snapped off about halfway up on the trunk along Highway 13 north of Manchester. The time was estimated from radar.
June 2018Flash FloodManchester-Water was about one foot deep over the road on the north side of Manchester. The water was over the curbs of the road, and into the grass.
March 2017Thunderstorm WindManchester-Iowa Department of Transportation road sensor measured this wind gust.
July 2016Thunderstorm WindManchester-A storm survey team observed numerous tree branches down that were greater than 6 inches in diameter. The time is estimated based on radar.
June 2016Thunderstorm WindManchester-Law enforcement reported a tree branch down in the 2200 block of Jefferson Road. The branch was large enough to require a deputy to remove it from the road. The time of this event is estimated from radar.
July 2016Thunderstorm WindManchester-A public report of 2 estimated 8 inch in diameter trees were down. This report was received by Twitter and the time was estimated by radar.
June 2015Thunderstorm WindManchester-Extensive damage reported 1 to 2 miles north of Manchester, including farm buildings flattened and trees snapped off.
June 2015Thunderstorm WindManchester-Numerous trees reported blown down, and power lines downed across Delaware County.
June 2014Thunderstorm WindManchester-The emergency manager reported numerous trees down.
July 2011Thunderstorm WindManchester-Wind gusts estimated to be 65 mph broke some windows in some homes in Manchester, IA at 537 am CDT July 11. Some power outages were also observed.
May 2010HailManchester-Quarter-sized hail fell just south of Manchester, IA at 935 pm May 12.
August 2010Thunderstorm WindManchester-Wind gusts estimated to be 60 mph blew down a large tree in front of the West Delaware Lambert School building in Manchester, IA during the early morning of August 13.
August 2009HailManchester-Quarter-sized hail fell about 3 miles south of Manchester, IA around 1236 pm August 9.
August 2009Thunderstorm WindManchester-Wind gusts estimated to be 65 mph were observed about 3 miles south of Manchester, IA around 1236 pm August 9.
April 2008Heavy RainManchester-The emergency manager reported water running over county roads especially from the southwest to the northeast portions of the county.
April 2008Flash FloodManchester-Emergency manager reported a few roads washed out in Delaware county, due to small streams overflowing onto some roads.
July 2008HailManchester-Nickel-sized hail fell on the far southern edge of Manchester, IA at 612 pm July 10. Pea-sized hail was widespread.
July 2008HailManchester-Quarter-sized hail fell on the far southern edge of Manchester, IA at 615 pm July 10.
July 2008HailManchester-Nickel-sized hail fell 1 mile north of Manchester, IA at 1033 am July 10. Pea-sized hail fell in Manchester.
July 2008HailManchester-Penny-sized hail fell 2 miles south of Manchester, IA at 1220 pm July 10.
September 2007Thunderstorm WindManchester-Winds estimated to be 65 mph blew down some trees in Manchester, IA.
July 2005Thunderstorm WindManchester-Jct of Highways 13 and 20
June 2003Thunderstorm WindManchester-Large tree down across highway
June 2002Flash FloodManchester-145th Avenue impassable due to high water.

Every storm recorded in Delaware County

Map coverage status

No historic map-sheet match is published for this property yet. That does not mean no map exists. This record needs a coordinate-quality review before it can be joined to a sheet boundary. Browse the county's mapped places while that work is pending.

Listed places nearby

5 within 8 miles

Other National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.

Photograph PropertyDistance Listed
Coffin's Grove Stagecoach House1.2 miles1975
J. J. Hoag House3.2 miles1976
Lincoln Elementary School3.3 miles2002
Delaware County Courthouse4.1 miles1981
Backbone State Park, Cabin-Bathing Area (Area A)7.2 miles1990

Sources for this property

National Archives recordThe nomination case file for reference 99001251 in Record Group 79.
Wikipedia articleCommunity-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA.
Delaware CountyAll 14 listed properties in this county.

Provenance

  • Listing record. National Park Service National Register of Historic Places, listed-properties dataset, current to 2026-05-22.
  • Map join. Address geocoded through the United States Census geocoder, then tested against the published boundary of every sheet in the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection.
  • How this page is made. Listing fields come from federal records; map-sheet coverage is a labelled coordinate-to-boundary calculation, not a source-field claim.
  • Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
  • Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
  • Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.